MINSK, April 12. /TASS/. Switzerland’s so-called "formula" on the Ukrainian conflict settlement is incompatible with China’s proposed initiative on the same issue, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday.
"The Chinese 12-point peace plan and Switzerland’s ‘formula’ are incompatible," Russia’s top diplomat said speaking at a news conference following the CIS (the Commonwealth of Independent States) Foreign Ministries Council meeting in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
Lavrov pointed out that Switzerland was simply following orders from the United States and its allies.
"I don’t see how it is possible to put a timid deer and a hedgehog in the same cart. It’s hard to imagine," the Russian minister said.
Lavrov explained that the Swiss formula aims to drag in as many countries as possible to support the ultimatum against Russia, fair or foul, while the Chinese plan is about dealing with systemic security problems, as well as rooting out the original causes for the conflict in Ukraine.
"Only after the root causes are settled, according to the Chinese [peace] plan, will it be possible to seriously start considering an agreement that takes into account the legal interests of both parties involved," the Russian foreign minister continued.
"This is something that we proposed back in December 2021, and it was about agreeing on the indivisibility of security measures and how it will be translated into practical steps," Lavrov said. "Our initiatives have been openly announced since 2007, when [Russian President Vladimir Putin] addressed the Munich Security Conference and warned the West against the temptation to gain more of a geopolitical advantage using a blatant anti-Russian approach."
According to Lavrov, "the West solemnly vowed at the highest level that no country or organization in the OSCE area would claim dominance, but in fact NATO was engaged in exactly this very dominance."
Swiss President Viola Amherd pointed out that she had already informed Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.
She alleged that the goal of the conference was "to find ways to start the negotiating process." Switzerland intends to engage "as many countries as possible" from different regions of the world that could present their vision of how the settlement process should be conducted.
According to the Swissinfo news outlet, the conference will be held June 15-16 at a hotel in the Burgenstock resort near Lake Lucerne.
In February 2023, the Chinese Foreign Ministry released a 12-point plan on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.
It stated that negotiations were the only way to resolve the crisis in Ukraine and urged all parties to support Moscow and Kiev in "making concessions" and in resuming direct dialogue as soon as possible. Moreover, China also urged not to add fuel to the fire so as to avoid any further escalation that leads to the Ukraine crisis spiraling out of control.